“Lauren, make sure you grab your booster out of my car so you have it when you go with Grandma and Grandpa!”

Lauren is used to taking her booster with her when she goes in someone else’s vehicle. She knows that it keeps her safe.

However, there is a new seat that is 10x smaller than the boosters that everyone is used to.

Yes, Lauren is 10 but she is only 4’8″ and doesn’t pass the 5 Step Test so she rides in a booster.

Example of improper belt fit:The lap belt is across her stomach, and the shoulder belt has a gap instead of sitting snuggly on her shoulder.

Proper Belt Fit

Boosters are required for kids to ensure that they fit in a vehicle seat belt that is designed for adults. The lap belt is to sit across the passengers hip bones and the shoulder belt needs to sit across the breast bone and collarbone. The belt needs to sit on the passenger’s strong skeletal structure, rather than the soft, fleshy parts (like your neck or stomach). Children aren’t ready to ride in a vehicle without a booster until they pass the 5 Step Test.

Booster to Go

Riding with other family or friends is always a concern for me. I need to know that she’ll be safe in their vehicles. The mifold is small enough that Lauren can tuck in her backpack when she heads out and she’ll be ready if she needs it.

Who can use the mifold?

The mifold states that it is for kids who are:

40-100lbs

40″ to 57″ (3’4″ to 4’9″)

at least age 4

(Please note that as a car seat technician, I need to remind parents that maturity is important. The instructions say that the child’s back needs to be against the vehicle seat back. This means that the child has to be mature enough to sit properly in a booster without wiggling, slouching or sleeping.)

Installing the mifold

The mifold comes with everything attached to it, ready to be used.

The shoulder adjuster has all the labels and CMVSS logo that is found on all car seats. And there is a nice slot to store the manual in; very important as the manual always needs to be with a car seat.

Before you begin, you must read the manual. It’s not very long and the photos are very helpful.

A recent Allstate Canada national poll showed that 95% of Canadian parents state that they are confident they know how to properly buckle a child in a car seat.

Sadly, that same poll showed that 23% of Canadians with children under 12 believe that using a snow suit is the best way to keep them warm in the winter months. Only about one-in-10 (11%) parents of children under 12 say the best way to dress a child is in thin, warm layers.

Safety should always be your primary concern

Dressing your child properly to ride in their car seat is very important. Car seat manufacturers state in car seat manuals that bulk clothing is not safe when buckling a child into the car seat.

Properly installing the car seat is step #1

The one statistic that wasn’t given to me was the percentage of parents who felt they are confident that they know how to properly install a car seat.

Safety 1st Grow and Go has a Level Line that must be level to the ground when rear facing. This is stated in the manual and on the stickers on the seat.

As many as 80% of children aren’t being correctly restrained in child seats or booster seats.[Source]

We only slightly touched on the “not used correctly” issues when talking about winter clothing. Some of the most common issues are:

Not installing the seat tight enough

Use the pinch test to see if the harness is tight enough.

Not using the tether strap when forward facing

Harness not tight enough (and winter clothing will give you a false sense of it being tight)

Chest clip too low

Harness straps in the incorrect position

Wrong seat for the child’s age, height and weight

Getting rid of the booster too soon

Letting your child sit in the front seat too soon

How do you make sure that your seat is installed properly?

The first thing that I tell all parents is to read the manuals!

Safety 1st Grow and Go’s manual and stickers are colour coordinated! Blue for rear facing and red for forward facing and booster!

You must read your vehicle manual to know where you can install the seat and if the vehicle manufacturer puts any restrictions on car seat installation. You also must read the car seat manual to know how to install the car seat into the vehicle and how to put your child safely in the car seat.

You must read the car seat manual to know how to install the car seat into the vehicle and how to put your child safely in the car seat.

The Safety 1st Grow and Go car seat has colour-coded their manual and the stickers making it easier to find information in the manual.

Safety 1st has really tried to help parents. This graphic on the first page is a quick snapshot of how to find the information they need:

Allstate Canada and Safety 1st made this video with some installation tips:

When to move to the next car seat?

“While different car seats and regulations may vary, experts agree that children should stay in their rear-facing car seats until they’re at least 18 kg (40 lbs.); in their forward-facing 5-point harness seat until they are at least 29 kg (65 lbs.); and should use booster seats until they are at least 9 years of age and able to sit up straight with their back flat against the vehicle’s seat, and knees easily bent over the seat.

In other words, you don’t need to rush in moving a child up to the next level. Parents should take their time and transition their child to the next car seat when it makes the most sense for their safety. In fact, the longer a child can stay in their rear-facing seat, the safer they’ll be because these seats help to protect the neck and spinal cord of developing children better than any other seat.”

Safety 1st Grow and Go car seat is a 3-in-1 car seat that can be used for all three stages.

Rear facing (with blanket for warmth)

Booster (from Amazon.ca)

Forward Facing

Allstate Canada’s video has great tips about when it is good to move your child to the next stage:

One of the great features of the Safety 1st Grow and Go seat is that it requires your child to be at least 2 years old before they can ride in it forward facing. This will help to ensure that children ride rear-facing until 2 years old. Rear-facing is the safest way for children to ride in a vehicle!

Have more questions?

It is aways best to talk to or meet with a Certified Car Seat Technician who can help you with any car seat questions that you might have. They will teach you about your car seat and how it fits in a vehicle.

It is nice to see that Allstate Canada has a certified car seat technician on their staff who can help their clients. This will be especially important if the client is ever in a collision as car seats must be replaced.

Enter to win a Safety 1st Grow and Go 3-in-1 Convertible Car Seat!

Allstate Canada and Safety 1st want to help your child be safe. Enter to win a Safety 1st Grow and Go car seat.

I remember being a mom-to-be, walking up and down the aisles of the baby store and scanning all of the items that I thought would be required to keep my baby safe.

Unfortunately, just because a company has a product and labels it as a “safety” item, doesn’t mean it will help keep baby protected.

There are many items on the “Top Registry Items” lists that parents shouldn’t be registering for, and I’ll explain why. I’ve also given some suggestions of what you should do, and I end with a nice list of the items that are good to have!

What not to register or buy

Seat Savers

These are the protectors that you can put in your car under the child car seat. They are supposed to protect your car from the indents that can happen from the child car seat or from spills and crumbs. Since this device was not crash tested with the child car seat that you own, you do not know how it will react in a collision.

NOTE: Car seat manufacturers will state is if any third party accessory can be used with or under the seat. Some do not even allow for the use of pool noodles or towels.

Suggested item – Nothing. It is best not to use them and install the car seat as it is described in the car seat owner’s guide.

Roll up Car Shade

These are the cute window blinds, that roll up into a metal holder at the top. They are supposed to protect your child from the sun. Unfortunately, the suction cups that come with them don’t stick forever. This could lead to the shade coming off of the window and falling directly on your child. During a collision, if the window was to break, the metal holder then becomes a projectile flying through your car causing further damage to your child or yourself.

Suggested item – The shades that come as a plastic sheet that clings to the window. If this was to fall off of the window, it won’t cause further damage to the occupants of the vehicle.

Cuddle Bags

These are the bags that are designed to go inside the car seat and then zip up and over your child to protect them from the cold. These are not recommended because they come between your child and the car seat. The added fabric will be compressed during a collision and will cause the harness straps to be loose. This means that your child will not be held firmly in the seat and there is potential for injury to occur.

Suggested item – You want the cover that goes over the entire car seat. There is a window in the top so that you can see the baby’s face. This type does not interfere at all with the harness straps and your child can be secured properly.

Bunting Bags and Baby snowsuits should also not be used in a car seat for the same reason; you will not get the harness straps tight enough and the bulky fabric will compress.

Suggested item – put your child in a warm, but not bulky outfit, put them in their car seat properly and tighten the straps, then place a warm blanket over the top.

NOTE: Cuddle bags and snowsuits are great for use in a stroller; just not in a car seat.

Mirrors

The cute mirrors that allow a parent to use the rear view mirror to see their rear-facing child are not recommended.

Not only could they come loose and become a projectile object in a collision, their sole purpose is to distract the driver. The driver of the car should be watching the road and vehicles around them when driving. If they are taking the time to look at the baby in the back seat, they are distracted.

Suggested item – Nothing. If you need to tend to a crying baby in the back seat, pull off the road to a safe location and then do what is required for the child.

Bumper Pads (baby bedding)

Bumper Pads are not suggested because if a child gets caught in them, they could suffocate.

Suggestion item: Nothing.

The only thing that should be on the mattress is a good fitted sheet and nothing else should be in the crib.

“Baby on Board” signs

For the same reason that roll up shades are not recommended, hard plastic baby on board signs should not be used as the suction cups detach and then it is a potential projectile in the car.

Suggested item: If you truly feel that you need a sign, get a magnet for the back bumper of your car. It is outside and can’t hurt the passengers inside the vehicle.

3rd Party Protective Padding that goes around the harness straps

The basic rules is: “If it didn’t come with the car seat, don’t use it.” Reason being is that everything that comes with the car seat has been crash tested with that seat and is safe to use. Many car seat manufacturers have started including these pads with the car seats so it’s not as much of an issue. Do not add anything to the harness straps of your child’s car seat.

Suggested item: If the harness should be too close to the child’s neck and the seat didn’t come with the protective pads, try to pull the child’s shirt collar up a bit so that the harness doesn’t rub.

Booster = Responsibility

In Ontario the minimum requirement is 40lbs AND 40 inches tall. My eldest daughter was 3 1/2 year old when she hit those limits. There was no way she was ready to be in a booster. A child is required to keep the belt in the proper position and not play with it. So if your child is not mature enough to use a seat belt like an adult, do not move them in to a booster (please read the article about “Forward-facing seats”)

Purpose of a Booster

A child, in the province of Ontario,by law, must ride in a booster until they are a minimum of 8 years old or 80lbs or 4’9″ tall.

A booster is used to raise the child up so that the vehicle’s seat belt can be used. A properly used seat belt will have the lap belt across the hips and the shoulder belt across the chest and collarbone.

Types of Boosters

There are 2 types of boosters: booster cushion and high-back booster.

High-back boosters:

this has a supportive back and head protection

the seat belt has a slot to be thread through to help maintain the proper position

Booster cushion:

a simple booster that raises the child to the proper height to put the seat belt in the proper position

a vehicle head rest MUST be adjusted so that it is raised to a height where the child’s ears are in the middle of the headrest.

Give your kid a boost!

Safe Kids Canada is stressing the need for a Canada-wide booster seat law. They did a poll and the results were astounding.

“Most parents of children under 10 years feel that a booster seat is necessary until a child is safely able to use a seat belt correctly. In fact, four out of five households (78 per cent) support the idea of a booster seat law. Mothers are more likely to support this type of law (81 per cent) than fathers (75 per cent).

Yet data indicates that only 30 per cent of Canadian children between four and eight years of age are using booster seats despite existing booster seat laws in the majority of Canadian provinces.2 The remaining children in this age range (1.8 million) are in jeopardy of suffering severe internal injuries during a crash, as a result of using a seat belt too early in their development. Legislation, education and enforcement in combination can increase the correct use of child restraints. Research has shown that a combination of strategies can reduce child passenger injuries.

Safe Kids Canada believes there should be a harmonized approach to booster seat legislation for all Canadian children. Safe Kids Canada is advocating for booster seat legislation that would apply to all children under four feet nine inches (145 cm) in height regardless of where they reside in Canada.”

Ready for a seat belt?

But just because they have reached that height limit, they still may not be ready for a seat belt.

Do this 5-Step Test:

1. Does the child sit all the way back against the auto seat?
2. Do the child’s knees bend comfortably at the edge of the auto seat?
3. Does the belt cross the shoulder between the neck and arm?
4. Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs?
5. Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?

Even if your child has reached the minimum height, weight or age requirement to not use a booster, if you answered “no” to any of the above questions, then your child is not ready to sit in a seat belt.

A child has to sit properly on the seat with the vehicle’s seat belt in order to be safe. If the child is going to slouch then the seat belt will not be able to work properly. There are booster seats in the market that allow for higher height and weight limits.

Why “mapsgirl” ?

Wendy is a cartographer! She draws maps!

When not mapping, Wendy is also a mom to two daughters. They are the inspiration of this blog. Passionate about child passenger safety, Wendy has been a certified Car Seat Technician in Ontario, Canada since 2008. [Read More …]